In all applications for a collapsible cot, and particularly when used for back packing and camping, compactness is a significant advantage. The applications for collapsible cots are numerous but are particularly adapted to those situations in which space is at a premium. For instance, the load which can be carried on the back of a camper is restricted not only in weight but in size. Therefore it can be readily seen that the more compact a disassembled collapsible cot becomes, the more advantageous it becomes to the user.
Various attempts have been made to reduce the size of the elements comprising the cot assembly when they are disassembled. At least as early as 1912, H. Mattes in his U.S. Pat. No. 1,020,998, disclosed a cot whose side rails were assembled from several lengths of pipe. While the pipe sections could be disassembled and the entire cot broken down into component parts, the disassembled package was still a relatively bulky unit.
In U.S. Pat. No. 1,944,064, M. J. Byer disclosed a folding cot including bow-shaped leg supports which fold upon themselves to form a relatively linear package. The side rails of the cot are hinged to fold in half when the unit is disassembled. The bow-shaped supports slide into sockets attached to the side rails. No actual connection between the bow-shaped support and the side rails occurs. The side rails merely rest upon the ends of the bow-shaped supports. Even when fully disassembled, this package is relatively large and the lack of positive connection between the supports and the supporting side rails diminishes the stability of the unit.
A convertible camp cot was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,973,888 which issued in 1961 to H. H. Beardsley. While this device provides more positive connection between the bow-shaped support legs and the side rails, the bow-shaped legs are rigid, resulting in a bulky package when disassembled.
A similar compact cot was disclosed in the 1964 U.S. Pat. No. 3,134,987, issued to W. H. Bertram. Once again, the disassembled package of this assembly is a bulky one since the bow-shaped support legs do not disassemble. This assembly also suffers from the instability discussed earlier since the side rails fit either over the ends of the bow-shaped support legs to be supported by the heads of a rivet positioned through the end of each support leg, or else the end of the support leg rests against a portion of the hinge mechanism comprising part of the side rails of the cot.
Therefore, it is an object of my invention to provide a collapsible cot which can be rapidly assembled.
It another object of my invention to provide a readily disassembleable cot which becomes a mechanically stable structure when fully assembled, due to substantial mechanical connection between all parts of the assembly.
Yet another object of my invention is to provide a collapsible cot assembly which disassembles to form a small package.
It is still a further object of my invention to provide a collapsible cot which can be assembled without the use of tools.